... for the past week or so my rear tire's been losing pressure ... about four-five pounds every few days, after examining the tire and finding no evidence of damage i assumed it was most likely a leaking rim bead ... the mileage left in the tire is worth less than having it remounted, so i figured to live with it for a few thousand miles until it was time to mount new tires ... last night, just to cover my bet, i ordered a replacement set of fancy michelin touring tires ...
... this afternoon, after a nice 100 miles up through the mountains, i stopped for a late lunch at one of maine's true gourmet gathering places, the irving truck stop in farmington ... coming out of the diner my eye was caught by a sharp but very, very tiny glint of reflected light coming from the center of the rear tire ... after driving back to roger's and getting my tool set ready, i pulled this out ...
... used to be any service station would've gladly made the repair, but now is the age of, "oh, insurance doesn't allow us to do that—but, never fear, we'll gladly sell you a new tire" ... no tearing of the belts, dead center, i decided to give the spiffy bmw tire repair kit a go ...
... was easy, nothing to it ... rather sloppy look is purely cosmetic, it'll smooth out after a few miles ... happens again i'll have had the practice to do a neater job of it ...
... and, good news, none of this caused me to fly off into the woods and startle a moose ...